Slip dispenser



H. H. MILLER SLIP DISPENSER Aug. 13, 1940.

Filed Aug. 22, 1939 m H M A C Patented Aug. 13, 1940 Application August22,

1 Claim.

This invention relates to a device for holding slips of paper which areto be dispensed one at a time. Where slips of thin paper are stacked ina container it has always been a difiicult 1natter to remove them byhand one at a time b cause of the natural tendency of the slips toadhere one to the other.

An object of the present invention is to provide a dispenser soconstructed that when light pressure is placed with a finger on the topslip of a stack, and said slip drawn by the contacting finger through anoutlet provided therefor, the slip will be automatically disengaged atits edges from the next adjoining slip thereunder and will be partlyfolded so that it can thus be withdrawn without pulling the adjacentslip therewith.

A further object is to provide a dispenser of this type which is freefrom all types of co1n- .plicating mechanism and is very efficient forthe purpose intended.

With the foregoing and other objects in View which will appear as thedescription proceeds, the invention consists of certain novel details ofconstruction and combinations of parts hereinafter more fully describedand pointed out in the claim, it being understood that changes may bemade in the construction and arrangement of parts without departing fromthe spirit of the invention as claimed.

In the accompanying drawing the preferred form of the invention has beenshown.

In said drawing Figure l is a perspective view of the dispenser, a slipbeing shown partly withdrawn from a stack thereunder.

Figure 2 is an enlarged horizontal section through the dispenser, theposition of a partly withdrawn slip being indicated by broken lines.

Figure 3 is a section through a portion of the structure taken on line3-3, Figure 1.

Figure 4 is a section on line -i, Figure 1.

Referring to the figures by characters of reference, l designates acontainerwhich is rectangular in cross-section and formed preferably oflight sheet metal. Located within the container at a point above thelower end thereof is a bottom plate 2 and those portions of two meetingwalls of the container which are located above one of the upper cornersof the bottom 2 are cut away along upwardly and laterally curved lines,as shown at 3 so as to provide cam edges merging into parallellongitudinal edges 4 which terminate at the top of the container. Thiscontainer may be formed with a removable clo- 1939, Serial No. 291,405

(Cl. 3l250) sure 5 for closing the top thereof. Attaching flanges 5 canbe extended laterally from the lower end of the container for thepurpose of attaching it fixedly to a supporting shelf or the like.

One of the curved cam edges is longer than the other, thereby extendingabove the shorter cam edge as shown clearly in Figure 1.

A stack of slips formed preferably of thin paper and containing anysuitable printed rnat- 0 ter, if so desired, is adapted to be placed onthe inclined bottom "2. so that the stack will thus be supported withthe various slips S one upon the other and inclined downwardly andbackwardly away from the outlet opening formed between 15 the cam edges3 and the straight edges t.

The exposed corners of the slips forming the stack are located along aline close to and substantially parallel with that corner of the housingor container leading to the lower end of the 20 outlet opening.

As two of the walls of the container are cut away in the formation ofthe outlet opening, they leave relatively narrow restraining areas atthe sides of the opening.

When it is desired to withdraw slips one at a time from the container,the user inserts a finger through the outlet opening and presses lightlyon the uppermost slip. He then pulls forwardly and because of frictionalengagement with the 30 slip, said slip is carried therewith. As theslip, like all of the others in the stack, is inclined downwardly andrearwardly, the forward pull on the uppermost slip will cause theexposed corner thereof to wedge between the opposed 35 sides of theoutlet opening and these sides, whether they be the cam edges 2-3 or thestraight edges i, will act to swing the engaged edges of the uppermostslip upwardly, thereby reducing the area of contact between the twouppermost slips. Consequently the uppermost slip will be pulledoutwardly through the opening while the next slip thereunder will remainflat on the stack and be properly retained by the retaining wall areasat the sides of the opening.

It has been found in practice that a structure such as herein describedis very efficient for use in the rapid successive withdrawal of slipsfrom a stack because it eliminates the natural tendency of the upperslip to remain in intimate con- 50 tact with the lower slip and to pullone or more slips therewith as it is withdrawn.

What is claimed is:

A slip dispenser including a container angular in cross-section, and adownwardly and rear- 55 wardly inclined bottom within the container, twoadjoining walls of the container being cut away along one corner of thecontainer to provide an outlet opening extending upwardly from a pointadjacent to one of the upper corners of the bottom, the walls of theopening being extended downwardly along downwardly converging lowerportions meeting at said corner of the container, said bottomconstituting means for 10 supporting a stack of paper slips in adownwardly and rearwardly inclined position and said walls of the outletopening constituting means for curling upwardly opposed edges of a topslip when withdrawn corner-first through the opening, those portions ofthe walls adjacent to the opening providing slip-retaining areas forholding in position those slips beneath the uppermost slip of the stack.

HENRY HARRISON MILLER

